The largest federal budget surplus in United States history was achieved during the fiscal years 1998, 1999, and 2000, peaking at an astonishing two hundred and thirty-six billion dollars in the year 2000. This rare era of fiscal balance was driven by a combination of robust economic growth fueled by the 1990s technology boom, high capital gains tax revenues, bipartisan deficit reduction agreements, and post-Cold War defense spending reductions. During this unique window, the federal government actually ran consecutive surpluses that allowed for a significant paydown of the national debt, creating a brief historical period where economists projected the complete elimination of publicly held federal debt within a decade.